The association between body mass index and the severity of cholecystitis
Received 25 October 2007; received in revised form 16 January 2008 published online 01 September 2008.
Abstract
Background
Severe cholecystitis occurs more frequently in males, and the cause of this discrepancy is unknown.
Methods
A retrospective study was performed on 910 consecutive patients who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy for cholecystitis. The patients were classified according to body mass index (BMI) as obese (n = 354, BMI ≥25 kg/m2) and nonobese (n = 556; BMI <25).
Results
In males, there was a significant negative correlation between the BMI and the severity of cholecystitis; the proportion of complicated acute cholecystitis was higher in the nonobese patients (21.5%) compared with the obese patients (8.1%) (P = .007) but not for the females (P = .80). A BMI <25 (odds ratio [OR] = 1.92, P = .01), advanced age (OR = 2.52, P < .001), male sex (OR = 1.74, P = .022), and leukocytosis (OR = 1.92, P = .024) were independent predictors for the development of complicated acute cholecystitis.
Conclusion
There is a negative association between BMI and the inflammation severity of cholecystitis in males, which resulted in a higher incidence of severe cholecystitis in the nonobese male patients.
aDepartment of Surgery, Ewha Womans University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
bDepartment of Surgery, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, 300 Gumi-dong, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, 463-707 Korea
ABSTRACT